Covington & Burling adds another top DOJ official to its swelling ranks

The revolving door continues to spin at Covington & Burling, which added yet another high-profile government official to its ranks.

On Wednesday, the powerhouse Washington, D.C.-based firm announced the hiring of Mythili Raman, acting chief of the criminal division of the U.S. Department of Justice. Raman, who became head of the criminal division in March 2013, joins her predecessor, Lanny Breuer, and several other DOJ alumni at Covington. Raman will be a D.C.-based partner in Covington’s litigation and white collar groups, where she will join Breuer, as well as three other ex-DOJ officials: Steven Fagell, former deputy chief of staff at the criminal division; Jim Garland, former deputy chief of staff to Attorney General Eric Holder (Holder is also a former Covington partner); and Dan Suleiman, former deputy chief of staff to Breuer.

During her year in charge at the criminal division, Raman, who officially left the DOJ in March, had supervised several high-profile prosecutions of major financial institutions. According to a DOJ statement, Raman oversaw a criminal probe of the London InterBank Offered Rate, resulting in criminal charges for six individuals. Raman also brought money laundering charges against Liberty Reserve, one of the world’s largest digital currency companies, and secured a conviction of former U.S. Congressman Richard Renzi of Arizona, for corruption. The FCPA Blog states that three of the 10 largest Foreign Corrupt Practices Act corporate resolutions occurred under her watch, including a $384 million settlement with Alcoa that is the fifth-largest FCPA result ever. Meanwhile, one of the major investigations that began under Raman and will continue after her departure is a probe of the massive data breach at Target.

In a statement, the firm touted Raman’s 18-year career in the DOJ Criminal Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Maryland. “Throughout her career, Mythili has distinguished herself as one of the most respected and accomplished prosecutors in the country,” said Timothy Hester, chair of the firm’s management committee. “She is a proven leader, an exceptional lawyer, and a person of the highest integrity. We are thrilled to welcome her to the partnership.”

Raman told the New York Times that reuniting with many of her DOJ colleagues was a big reason why she chose Covington. Since 2013, the firm has taken on several government officials. In addition to the DOJ contingent, Covington has hired Jon Kyl, former U.S. Senator from Arizona; Howard Berman, a longtime U.S. Representative from California; Kathy Brown, a former associate general counsel with the Department of Defense; Lee Kelley, a former deputy tax legislative counsel in the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Tax Policy; and Tony Herman, former general counsel to the Federal Election Commission. “Increased scrutiny by multiple federal agencies clearly has become more and more of a challenge for our clients,” Hester said to the New York Times.